Ukraine War Watch Thread

[ibm9000]

Correction:

-ten minutes of History at a time-

[Xyls]

But I was told big scawy Poop Tin was gonna deliver a speech showing how he was going to mobilize and scare everybody.

Putin kept Russia and the world waiting hours for a speech that never happened.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/20/worl ... ussia.html

[Ozzie guy]

Putin announces partial mobilization for Russian citizens

(This is breaking news so there is likely more details to come and accuracy of the news might vary)

Putin said he has signed a decree on the partial mobilization, which is due to start on Wednesday.

“We are talking about partial mobilization, that is, only citizens who are currently in the reserve will be subject to conscription, and above all, those who served in the armed forces have a certain military specialty and relevant experience,” Putin stressed.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/investi ... -citizens/

[weatheriscool]

Flights out of Russia sell out after Putin orders partial call-up
Source: Reuters

GDANSK, Sept 21 (Reuters) - One-way flights out of Russia were selling out fast on Wednesday after President Vladimir Putin ordered the immediate call-up of 300,000 reservists.

Putin's announcement, made in an early-morning television address, raised fears that some men of fighting age would not be allowed to leave Russia.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the call-up would be limited to those with experience as professional soldiers, and that students and those who had only served as conscripts would not be called up. Nevertheless, Google Trends data showed a spike in searches for Aviasales, which is Russia's most popular website for purchasing flights.

Direct flights from Moscow to Istanbul in Turkey and Yerevan in Armenia, both destinations that allow Russians to enter without a visa, were sold out on Wednesday, according to Aviasales data.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/fl ... 022-09-21/

lol

[Time_Traveller]

Flights out of Russia sell out after Putin orders partial call-up
Source: Reuters

GDANSK, Sept 21 (Reuters) - One-way flights out of Russia were selling out fast on Wednesday after President Vladimir Putin ordered the immediate call-up of 300,000 reservists.

Putin's announcement, made in an early-morning television address, raised fears that some men of fighting age would not be allowed to leave Russia.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the call-up would be limited to those with experience as professional soldiers, and that students and those who had only served as conscripts would not be called up. Nevertheless, Google Trends data showed a spike in searches for Aviasales, which is Russia's most popular website for purchasing flights.

Direct flights from Moscow to Istanbul in Turkey and Yerevan in Armenia, both destinations that allow Russians to enter without a visa, were sold out on Wednesday, according to Aviasales data.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/fl ... 022-09-21/

lol

Maybe its for citizens who don't want to be a part of it.

[ibm9000]

True patriots who are going to bring their money back from Switzerland and Panama for the good of the Motherland... probably.

[raklian]

[raklian]

Flights out of Russia sell out after Putin orders partial call-up
Source: Reuters

GDANSK, Sept 21 (Reuters) - One-way flights out of Russia were selling out fast on Wednesday after President Vladimir Putin ordered the immediate call-up of 300,000 reservists.

Putin's announcement, made in an early-morning television address, raised fears that some men of fighting age would not be allowed to leave Russia.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the call-up would be limited to those with experience as professional soldiers, and that students and those who had only served as conscripts would not be called up. Nevertheless, Google Trends data showed a spike in searches for Aviasales, which is Russia's most popular website for purchasing flights.

Direct flights from Moscow to Istanbul in Turkey and Yerevan in Armenia, both destinations that allow Russians to enter without a visa, were sold out on Wednesday, according to Aviasales data.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/fl ... 022-09-21/

lol

[caltrek]

Protests in Moscow and St Petersburg today have grown pretty large. People chanting “No to War!” Dozens of arrests reported

From Axios:

Extract:

Over 1,000 people have been detained for holding protests on Wednesday against Russian President Vladimir Putin's "partial mobilization" of reservists for the invasion of Ukraine, according to OVD-Info, a Russia-based human rights organization that monitors political persecution in the country.

...
Why it matters: Hundreds of people organized demonstrations in at least 20 Russian cities, including Moscow and Saint Petersburg, against the order in violation of Russia's anti-protest laws, which outlaw unsanctioned rallies.

• It's the largest wave of demonstrations to erupt since the start of the invasion, when over 1,700 Russians were detained during anti-war protests in February.

...
The big picture: Around 300,000 reservists will be drafted for the war in Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said after Putin's address.

Source: https://www.axios.com/2022/09/21/russia ... n-protests

[caltrek]

Here is a link to an English language translation of Putin's speech regarding the partial call-up:

http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/t ... ents/69390

[caltrek]

The following article was published prior to Putin’s announcement.


This Is What ‘Mobilization’ That Russians Keep Talking About Actually Means
by Joseph Trevithick

September 20, 2022

Introduction:

(The Drive) A set of dubious referendums regarding the annexation of various Russian-occupied areas in eastern and southern Ukraine are set to come in the next week or so, according to Russian state media. This, in turn, would help provide a pretext for a formal declaration of war on Ukraine and putting the entire country on a true war footing. The term 'mobilization' continues to come up in Russian media, but it relates to more than just a general idea. Here's what it means and why it is so important.

Mobilization, or 'mobilizatsiya' in Russian, is a relatively well-defined set of authorities that are ostensibly regulated by Russian law. A key aspect of the legal parameters is the need for Russia to be in a formal state of war for mobilization to be declared, hence the need for a pretext given the current unprovoked war on Ukraine. Officially declaring occupied areas to be Russian territory would allow the Kremlin to claim, regardless of the facts, that its soil is under attack from Ukrainian forces. Currently, the Russian government describes what it is carrying out in Ukraine as a "special military operation."

Conclusion:

The Russian government arguing that newly annexed areas of Ukraine are its sovereign territory and therefore that it is under attack from a foreign power could raise new concerns about the potential for more significant escalation, including the use of nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in response to a claimed existential threat.

With Russian forces currently on the defensive in many respects, it is not unreasonable to wonder whether the Kremlin may be looking for a way to freeze the current conflict and secure at least some of its gains. A so-called escalate-to-deescalate strategy involving at least the threat of nuclear weapon use has been postulated as one way Russian authorities might seek such an immediate halt in the fighting.

All told, it very much remains to be seen what Putin will actually announce today, how those plans will be implemented, and what impacts they may have on the conflict immediately and in the coming weeks and months.

Read more here: https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ ... lly-means

[caltrek]

Ukraine Situation Report: Putin’s Speech
by Thomas Newdick
September 21, 2022

Extract:

(The Drive) As supposed evidence of nuclear blackmail, Putin pointed to what he said was Ukrainian shelling of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant that was “encouraged by the West.” He also claimed that “senior representatives of NATO countries” had made statements about “the possibility and permissibility of using weapons of mass destruction against Russia: nuclear weapons.”

While Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of shelling the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, it’s not immediately clear which statements by “senior NATO representatives” were being referred to. Seemingly, Putin’s vague claims of Western nuclear threats were deployed as a ruse for him to remind Western leaders — and Ukraine — that Russia “also possesses various means of destruction, and in some cases, they are more modern than those of NATO countries.” That last statement appears to be in reference to Putin’s so-called “super weapons,” unveiled to much fanfare in 2019 and in which he has since taken a keen interest. There has been much speculation that a new test of those weapons, the 9M730 Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile, is imminent, based on satellite imagery.

Read more here: https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ ... r-threats

[caltrek]

West Dismisses Referendums Planned in Russian-Controlled Areas of Ukraine as Illegitimate
September 21, 2022

Introduction:

(Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty Via Eurasia Review) Western leaders have rejected plans by authorities in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine to hold referendums in the coming days on joining the territories to Russia.

U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan said Washington rejected any such referendums “unequivocally,” while German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron both used the word “sham” to describe the referendums that pro-Moscow separatists said would be held starting on September 23 in four territories occupied by Russia.

“This has no legal standing,” Macron said on September 20 before addressing the UN General Assembly in New York. “The very idea of organizing referendums in territories that have experienced war…is the sign of cynicism.”

Russian news agencies reported earlier on September 20 that the so-called public council in Ukraine’s Kherson region — large parts of which have been under Moscow’s military control since March — urged the Russian-imposed authorities to “immediately” hold a vote on the region joining the Russian Federation.

Moscow had been moving ahead with plans to hold referendums on joining Russia in other occupied regions, including Luhansk, Donetsk, and Zaporizhzhya.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/21092022 ... gitimate/

[caltrek]

Moscow’s Use of Criminals in Russian Military Undermining Unit Cohesion And Performance
by Paul Goble
September 21, 2022

Introduction:

(Eurasia Review) A major cause for the poor performance of the Russian army in Ukraine is Moscow’s decision to use criminals in the ranks has destroyed unit cohesion because professional soldiers aren’t happy about having to work with people they don’t trust who often are getting more money than they are, soldiers tell Novaya gazeta.

In order not to declare a general mobilization, the Russian government is allowing criminals to join the ranks often at high pay and with a promise that their sentences will be reduced or even cancelled. Most receive little training and don’t fit in well with professional soldiers who resent them.

Because the professionals can’t count on the criminals to perform, they don’t trust them and units don’t function as they should, soldiers tell the paper – yet another example of an effort by the Kremlin to take a shortcut that is now blowing up in its face as Russian units collapse in the face of Ukrainian advances.

Most commentators have suggested Putin is reluctant to declare a general mobilization to fight the war in Ukraine because he fears such a step would trigger massive protests. But Yevgeny Suchkov says the Kremlin leader has even more compelling reasons: it could destabilize Russia and put Putin’s future as leader in doubt.

“The entire stability of the power vertical in Russia for the last 20 years,” the director of the Moscow Institute of Electoral Technologies, “has rested on the positive view of Vladimir Putin which exists in mass consciousness.” Suggesting he has made a mistake in invading Ukraine by ordering a mobilization could call that image into question.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/21092022 ... nce-oped/

[weatheriscool]

Moscow’s Use of Criminals in Russian Military Undermining Unit Cohesion And Performance
by Paul Goble
September 21, 2022

Introduction:

(Eurasia Review) A major cause for the poor performance of the Russian army in Ukraine is Moscow’s decision to use criminals in the ranks has destroyed unit cohesion because professional soldiers aren’t happy about having to work with people they don’t trust who often are getting more money than they are, soldiers tell Novaya gazeta.

In order not to declare a general mobilization, the Russian government is allowing criminals to join the ranks often at high pay and with a promise that their sentences will be reduced or even cancelled. Most receive little training and don’t fit in well with professional soldiers who resent them.

Because the professionals can’t count on the criminals to perform, they don’t trust them and units don’t function as they should, soldiers tell the paper – yet another example of an effort by the Kremlin to take a shortcut that is now blowing up in its face as Russian units collapse in the face of Ukrainian advances.

Most commentators have suggested Putin is reluctant to declare a general mobilization to fight the war in Ukraine because he fears such a step would trigger massive protests. But Yevgeny Suchkov says the Kremlin leader has even more compelling reasons: it could destabilize Russia and put Putin’s future as leader in doubt.

“The entire stability of the power vertical in Russia for the last 20 years,” the director of the Moscow Institute of Electoral Technologies, “has rested on the positive view of Vladimir Putin which exists in mass consciousness.” Suggesting he has made a mistake in invading Ukraine by ordering a mobilization could call that image into question.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/21092022 ... nce-oped/

Russia is a criminal state so it doesn't shock me that they're using thugs and monsters. They don't give a damn about life or the rules of war that is for sure. How sick.

[weatheriscool]

West Dismisses Referendums Planned in Russian-Controlled Areas of Ukraine as Illegitimate
September 21, 2022

Introduction:

(Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty Via Eurasia Review) Western leaders have rejected plans by authorities in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine to hold referendums in the coming days on joining the territories to Russia.

U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan said Washington rejected any such referendums “unequivocally,” while German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron both used the word “sham” to describe the referendums that pro-Moscow separatists said would be held starting on September 23 in four territories occupied by Russia.

“This has no legal standing,” Macron said on September 20 before addressing the UN General Assembly in New York. “The very idea of organizing referendums in territories that have experienced war…is the sign of cynicism.”

Russian news agencies reported earlier on September 20 that the so-called public council in Ukraine’s Kherson region — large parts of which have been under Moscow’s military control since March — urged the Russian-imposed authorities to “immediately” hold a vote on the region joining the Russian Federation.

Moscow had been moving ahead with plans to hold referendums on joining Russia in other occupied regions, including Luhansk, Donetsk, and Zaporizhzhya.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/21092022 ... gitimate/

It only matters if they can hold the ground. Russia has proven so weak that they might not be able too.

[caltrek]

Putin Call Up for More Troops and the China Factor
by Stefan Wolff and Tatyana Malyarenko
September 21, 2022

Extract:

(The Conversation) Putin met with China’s president Xi Jinping on September 15 at the margins of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Just before, Xi had also visited Kazakhstan and expressed his clear support for that country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. This was a clear signal to Putin to keep out of Central Asia and foreshadowed the subsequent humiliating climbdown of Putin having to admit that China had concerns about Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine.

Read more here: https://theconversation.com/ukraine-wa ... ss-191044

[weatheriscool]

Putin Call Up for More Troops and the China Factor
by Stefan Wolff and Tatyana Malyarenko
September 21, 2022

Extract:

(The Conversation) Putin met with China’s president Xi Jinping on September 15 at the margins of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Just before, Xi had also visited Kazakhstan and expressed his clear support for that country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. This was a clear signal to Putin to keep out of Central Asia and foreshadowed the subsequent humiliating climbdown of Putin having to admit that China had concerns about Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine.

Read more here: https://theconversation.com/ukraine-wa ... ss-191044

Russia is well known for throwing masses of men into the meat grinder. Sick country. They'd be better off spending more on their military and working on winning wars with an minimum amount of deaths on their side. Like the US military.

[caltrek]

On President Putin’s Efforts to Expand His Military
by Niko Vorobyov
September 21, 2022

Extract::

(Al Jazeera) On Tuesday – without any public debate or discussion – the Duma had adopted a law imposing penalties for looting, refusing to fight, surrender and desertion.
…
“They are losing the war, and they want to do something not to lose it,” Oleg Ignatov, a Moscow-based analyst for Crisis Group, told Al Jazeera.
“I think the main problem is they have a shortage of personnel on the ground – they don’t have enough soldiers to attack Ukraine, or even protect the occupied areas. They want to close the gap with the Ukrainians and that’s why they declared the mobilisation.”
…
Kyrgyzstan and its neighbours Uzbekistan and Tajikistan are a source of migrant workers to Russia. On Wednesday, the Kyrgyz embassy in Moscow warned its compatriots that getting involved in a conflict on behalf of a foreign power may be a crime back home.

Although tens of thousands of Syrian and other foreign fighters were supposedly enlisted to fight on Moscow’s behalf earlier this year, a significant foreign legion does not yet appear to have materialised.

Read more here: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/9/ ... tion-plan

[caltrek]

Comments Regarding Putins Partial Mobilisation Speech
by Gillian Duncan
September 21, 2022

Extract:

(The National) (Political scientist Sergei Markov said) “It is western countries who are fighting against [the] Russian army using Ukrainian soldiers as their slaves.”
…
“In this war, there is only one aggressor, Russia, and one aggressed country, Ukraine,” he (EU chair Charles Michel) tweeted.
…
“We must not give in to his blackmail and support Ukraine as much as we can. #Russia is as dangerous to Europe and the world’s peace today as Nazi Germany was in the last century #StandWithUkraine.” (- Latvia’s foreign minister Edgars Rinkevics).
…
Czech Republic Prime Minister Petr Fiala called the partial mobilisation “an attempt to further escalate the war Russia launched against Ukraine” and “further proof that Russia is the sole aggressor”.

Read more here: https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/ ... r-threat/